The Next Right Thing

In this episode of The Executive EDGE with Dr. Aman Kaur, Dr. Kaur sits down with Dr. Greg White, Founder of PepperPointe Partnerships, for a powerful conversation on purpose-driven leadership, doctor ownership, and the quiet weight that comes with building something meant to last.

From growing up in a farming family with no running water until age nine to becoming a visionary leader in dentistry, Dr. White shares the experiences that shaped his resilience, foresight, and commitment to doing what he calls “the next right thing.”

Together, Dr. Aman Kaur and Dr. White explore what it really takes to lead through complexity, preserve legacy, build durable organizations, and make the hard 51/49 decisions when there is no obvious answer.

This conversation is a reminder that true leadership is not about popularity, speed, or certainty. It is about purpose, accountability, and having the courage to keep moving forward when the path is heavy.

For any executive, founder, clinician, or leader navigating growth, pressure, and responsibility, this episode offers a grounded and unforgettable look at what it means to lead with conviction.

In this Executive Feature, you’ll discover:
●     How Dr. White’s early life shaped his resilience, work ethic, and leadership philosophy

●     Why purpose-driven leadership requires patience, conviction, and long-term thinking

●     What it means to build an organization designed to preserve doctor ownership and legacy

●     How leaders navigate complexity when the right decision is not obvious

●     Why the hardest leadership decisions often come down to 51/49 judgment calls

●     The quiet emotional weight that comes with carrying responsibility for people, practices, and the future

●     How “doing the next right thing” can become a guiding principle in uncertain seasons

●     Why durable organizations are built on more than growth, scale, or short-term momentum

●     The role of accountability in earning trust and protecting what matters most

●     What founders and executives can learn from leading with humility, courage, and conviction

About Dr. Greg White
Dr. Greg White is the Founder of PepperPointe Partnerships, a doctor-owned dental partnership organization built to support clinicians, preserve legacy, and create a sustainable model for long-term growth. His leadership is shaped by resilience, purpose, and a deep belief in doing what is right for doctors, teams, patients, and the future of dentistry.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

If you're leading the right way and you're the s you're a CEO, um you will find yourself at times being in a room full of people and you are completely alone.

SPEAKER_00 0:11

What kind of leadership feels happy when you're going to be Dr. White, thank you so much for being here. And I know you have traveled a long way, and we are here in London, and I can't uh thank you enough for taking time to meet with me.

SPEAKER_01 0:36

You know, the pleasure is all mine and mine. Thank you so much for allowing me to be here. I really appreciate it.

SPEAKER_00 0:41

No, and I uh I have I every time I meet with you, you're one of those people who teach me things that I didn't even know existed. So I know there's going to be so much from this episode everyone's going to learn from.

SPEAKER_01 0:55

You're very kind.

SPEAKER_00 0:56

Dr. White, I know a little bit about your story, how you became a dentist. I want you to share it uh with me. How what what what made you become a dentist?

SPEAKER_01 1:08

Uh well, I'd I'd love to sit here and tell you that it was because I wanted to help out all of humanity, um, which isn't every application I think that's ever sent to a dental school, or at least back when I was applying. But um I'll be honest with you. I grew up in a um in a very poor area uh in a house that had no running water until I was nine years old. And uh we were farmers, we were sharecroppers, and which meant we farmed other people's land. And um I I can just remember the anxiety uh in our family uh needing it to rain at a certain time or not rain, or just so many variables that we were completely out of control of. And I didn't want to move forward in life with that same anxiety that I saw from my parents and grandparents. So I started looking around at some of the um people in the local town where I was uh raised and started seeing what professions people were doing that seemed to not have that same uncertainty in their lives. And um dentistry and specifically orthodontics is the one that rose to the uh top. It was um it was a job that I felt like I could enjoy doing uh and that would provide me the security and the stability that I was looking for in my life as it was going to play out.

SPEAKER_00 2:30

And uh, Dr. White, so not just dentist, orthodontist, and coming from family of farmers, how was that journey?

SPEAKER_01 2:39

Uh it was um long and not direct.

SPEAKER_00 2:42

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 2:43

Yeah. Uh nobody in my family had ever gone to college. And so um, after the crops uh were out of the field in uh 1981, uh I um uh got in my car and drove to Lexington, Kentucky, um, which was about seven hours away from where I grew up in West Tennessee. And uh I had a relative, a distant relative, who was at school there in a school called Transylvania University. And I just wandered up onto the um uh administrative building uh steps one morning uh on a Saturday and waited around because no doors were open until this uh older gentleman came up and approached me and asked me what I was doing there, and I told him I was there to go to college. And uh he informed me that I had not gone through the proper process. Evidently, you're supposed to actually apply uh and have interviews and get accepted. Uh, but I had to fast track this because I remember I had $23 and a half tank of gas, and I couldn't even get back home. Oh, wow. And so I told this gentleman, Dr. Munro Moosnik, as it turns out, uh, who was um the uh head of the biology department there. He kind of took me under his wing, he got me enrolled, he got me work study, a job, and uh ultimately that led to a uh full academic scholarship there.

SPEAKER_00 4:00

Oh wow, very impressive. I did not know this uh whole thing, how you ended in the college. Um so um you you have found Pepper Point partnerships uh after as after working as um orthodontist for some time. What made you develop a DSO or the structure you have? Because you your PepperPoint is um it's uh an organization we all look up to. Hopefully one day other people can be like that.

SPEAKER_01 4:29

Yeah, so really what it came out of was two things that happened at the same time, Amon. That was um the complexity that had um come to dentistry, and the fatigue that that complexity was creating for the dentist and for the practitioners. And what I mean by that is uh the technology that was coming into play, the complexity of um regulations, uh, the insurance companies and uh all that surrounds the revenue cycle management side of things, that dentistry became extremely complex. And it's different than a lot of industries in that the dentist is the provider. They're having to do the work while at the same time manage the complexities of a business, and so many of them just became exhausted. At the same time, consolidation was occurring in dentistry. You started seeing a lot of private equity money that was coming in, and those two things kind of merged at the same time that the cost of dental education had escalated to a point where the old transition model of one dentist passing it along to a next really wasn't viable anymore. There was too much of a gap there between what private equity was offering and what the new dentist coming out of school could afford.

SPEAKER_00 5:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 5:44

So looking down the road at that, I was seeing that um the doctor ownership was leaving dentistry and it was happening pretty quickly. When I say ownership, I'm talking about who actually owns the non-clinical assets. Yeah, yeah, the profits, the furniture, the fixtures, the equipment, all of that stuff. And uh so I saw a legacy getting ready to disappear and realized that it was not the dentist down the street that was the competition, but rather it was the changing marketplace itself. And so at that point, I brought many of my colleagues together and um said, I believe that we're stronger together and that if we can do this, we can maintain ownership and transition that ownership to the next generation at a lower cost, one that they can afford. And the founding doctors can recoup the balance of that through long-term passive uh income through ownership in a management company. And so that's the way that was established. And uh, over the course of um the next two to three years, and this was all surrounding COVID, okay, is when this was all occurring, right before and right after. Um, Pepper Point was formed, and um the great experiment in um dental self-governance began.

SPEAKER_00 7:03

That yeah, it has uh it's been way more than an experiment. It's something we all look up to in the industry. Thank you. Dr. White, you have this unique ability to look ahead always, like how you chose your profession, how you have set up the organization. Um, where does this come from?

SPEAKER_01 7:25

Well, I think it just comes from the story that I told you in growing up. Um, when you uh grow up the way that I did, and everything that you do and everything that you have is surrounding you in nature on a farm, there are always uncertainties. Every day is an uncertainty. And so you have to look at that uncertainty that is today, live through that day, but also anticipate what's down the road so that you're not always playing from behind and in reactive mode. So the only way to be proactive is to try and anticipate what's going to happen in the future. And those two great predictors come down to a couple of different factors. One is what's happening in the environment around you and an understanding of human nature. Human natures are um are human beings are quite predictable in nature. I don't think that we have changed very much in the last 4,000 years. We just have much nicer caves now.

SPEAKER_00 8:28

That is a nice way to say it. Uh so you're you're saying that human beings are more predictable than we think.

SPEAKER_01 8:35

Yes. Um do you mean to elaborate on that?

SPEAKER_00 8:38

Yes, please, please do. I am uh in awe because I always hear that they're so human behavior can be very unpredictable, but you think it's predictable.

SPEAKER_01 8:48

Well, they are predictable in this sense that most people are motivated by fear, fear of loss.

SPEAKER_00 8:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 8:54

Much more so than they're motivated by gain. And if you understand what people are afraid of losing and you can anticipate that and try to mitigate that for them and show them a path forward, that generally they will respond favorably toward that. But I also uh believe that um uh humans by nature, and it's becoming even more so now from a cultural standpoint, uh especially in the United States, uh, that um uh there's a tendency toward self-focus. Uh I can remember having a camera for 25 years and never once thought around thought about turning it around and uh taking a picture of myself.

SPEAKER_00 9:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 9:35

And now I don't know the last time that I actually saw a photograph of someone without them holding the camera.

SPEAKER_00 9:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 9:43

So if there's ever a clear indication that self-focus has become um the primary, I would say just take a look at the photos that you see.

SPEAKER_00 9:53

Yeah, that is such a uh unique perspective. Yeah, I've never thought of it. Um I was going to ask you, I think you've elaborated that how the way you have set up Pepper Point is looking ahead, making sure your partner dentists are not just good for today, but their next generations are taken care of. And I can see where it's coming from. Where it has to be very complex. And uh and I know you've made a lot of personal investments time after time, have or if any time if needed to rescue you have been there. Why is this so important? Even with today's um challenging, challenge very, very challenging work environment, economy and everything. You just make sure this is your North Star. Why? Why is and how?

SPEAKER_01 10:47

So here's where I would say this comes from. The the practice that I was in, um the orthodontic practice, white grew married orthodontics, um in central Kentucky. We invested uh tens of millions of dollars back into uh uh the community through schools and the arts and sports, you name it, 300 communities over a couple of decades. Um because we believe that any company has a responsibility to do what they can to add to the culture and create or help create a community that people want to live in and stay in. So orthodontics was simply a mechanism in order to really feed back into the community. And over a period of time, that's a legacy that gets created, and you don't want to lose that legacy. So it was extremely, I was extremely passionate about that and still am. And, you know, I'm 63 years old now, Amon, and this is how I choose to spend out, spend the rest of my years, is doing this because I care so much about it. I would say that the greatest challenge in in the pepper point model, the model of self-governance, the model of the doctors truly owning all of the assets, clinical and otherwise, in the practice, is the one side of that coin is they own it all.

SPEAKER_00 12:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 12:16

And they have all of the power and the control of it. The other side of it is that they have all the power and the control of it and can make all the decisions. And when you bring together a group of independent dentists that have been independent and in their own little micro environment within the four walls of their office, and you try to bring 30, 40, 50, 60 of them together to function as a group with that self-governance and that and that's um that free will, it is very, very difficult to keep them all focused on the same goals because we naturally tend to revert back to that natural human behavior.

SPEAKER_00 13:01

Yes. I was actually just gonna ask, was there ever a pivotal moment, a decision or a setback that you want to mention and that has helped you shape Pepper Point today, or maybe as you look ahead? Is there something you're like, oh, that was the moment, and I it just sticks out for you always?

SPEAKER_01 13:23

Well, the first moment was simply the realization that uh a third option needed to be formed. Um it alone in a private practice is just death by a thousand paper cuts. Yes, it really is. It's it's um margin margin compression, uh the regulations, the the and especially post-COVID with the staffing issues and rising inflation rates and uh supply shortages and all that goes with it, uh, just very just incredibly difficult. Um as you move forward from that though, you still have the residual effects from it. And um I wouldn't say that there has been any great moment since then has that has shaped Pepper Point. I think Pepper Point is, as I said, it's an experiment. Can dentists really come together and focus to move forward? And so it is a daily challenge to always try to hold that together. And um I would say that rather than them being pivotal moments or specific times, it is just a daily grind that I embrace.

SPEAKER_00 14:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:37

And you just sometimes, you know, you look around and you're like, man, this just sucks. And then you just got to embrace the suck.

unknown 14:43

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 14:44

It has to be um veering uh to have deal with so many human emotions, and especially sometimes it's five steps backward and two forward, right? And I know you like progress and you like to do it at a good speed.

SPEAKER_01 14:59

Yeah. No, I do move fast, and the results have been incredible.

SPEAKER_00 15:03

The financial results of uh they don't happen without uh good leadership.

SPEAKER_01 15:08

It has been absolutely amazing. Um and you just keep pressing forward. And I I just believe ultimately that um a leader has to have a couple of qualities in them. They have to get up every single morning with fight in them. Yeah, they've got to embrace the fight and just charge into it every single day. And no matter what's happening, no matter what the circumstances is, you never ever believe you're gonna lose. You cannot ever think for one moment that you're ever gonna lose because you're not. Winners will not ever face the possibility of loss.

SPEAKER_00 15:50

I love it.

SPEAKER_01 15:53

And I get up every single day, and my my mindset is just make a little progress today by always doing the next right thing. And the next right thing is rarely popular, yeah. But it's always the right thing, and I will live by that and stand by that in everything that I do.

SPEAKER_00 16:16

Dr. White, what do you believe CEOs get wrong uh when they are thinking about building these lasting teams and persevere through through challenges?

SPEAKER_01 16:25

Yeah. So two things. Um, but I'm gonna preface that by saying first of all, you have to have the time to be able to do it. And in today's um consolidation, the predominant model has a three to five year window.

SPEAKER_00 16:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:44

Um recap to recap. And so you've got this time limit set on it. It's a time-bound finite period, and you have to do two very important things whether you're in that model or not. Number one is you have to have a clearly defined purpose and you have to stick to that purpose. It doesn't mean that the strategy can't change, the tactics can't change, but the purpose has to be known and everybody has to understand it, and you've got to constantly repeat it. The second thing is you have to establish and maintain a strong culture. You have to have have the right people in the right seats. And what I mean by that is the right people are the people that believe in the same core values that you believe in. Right seat means they are uniquely capable of doing the job that they're in. Once you accomplish that, you got the purpose, you got the right people in the right seats and the right processes. Now it's about accountability. You absolutely have to hold people accountable. And in order to do that, you have to have specified roles and responsibilities and measures in each of those seats. And if you ever allow accountability or if you do not hold people accountable, then you're going to start seeing a deterioration because you get the culture that you tolerate and you get the culture that you deserve.

SPEAKER_00 18:14

Absolutely. Um, and um, it's uh easier said than done. I mean, holding people accountable and with everything, especially with you know, current staffing challenges. Sometimes you're like, oh my gosh, there's so much institutional knowledge.

SPEAKER_01 18:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 18:31

It's hard. So, what do you recommend in those situations? I deal with it so many times. It's like I it's better than what I will get in next six months outside.

SPEAKER_01 18:44

Yeah. It is a challenge, but I believe that um great cultures attract great people. And uh the people within your organization generally know more people like them. That's true. And so we recruit pretty heavily from the people that we already have. What are your best friends doing?

SPEAKER_00 19:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 19:03

Okay. Let's bring them in. Bring them in, let me talk to them.

SPEAKER_00 19:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 19:06

Um, you always know whether your culture's good or bad by who's leaving, you know?

SPEAKER_00 19:12

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 19:13

If the people you want to leave are leaving, you're right on. If your good people are leaving, the people that are great for your culture, and I don't mean people that are great for their job.

SPEAKER_00 19:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 19:23

I have been around people that were that really believed in what we were doing at various points in time, and then became non-believers. And it's time for them to move on. Um I I view a business like a stage production.

SPEAKER_00 19:38

I I remember you sharing that story. Yes, it's so true.

SPEAKER_01 19:41

You do you have you have uh actors that are um part of some scenes and not part of others. You have some that make cameo appearances, and you have some that are there from the opening curtain to the final curtain. And you never know who those people are gonna be. So since you don't know who the people are gonna be that are gonna be on the stage at the end of it, you have to stay true to the plot.

SPEAKER_00 20:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 20:07

And the plot in a business is the purpose.

SPEAKER_00 20:11

Dr. Um White, I I can speak with you. Is um in today's world, it things have become about process versus purpose sometimes. It frustrates me when I hear that it's like tailbagging the dog. How do you deal with that? Do you have you ever incurred challenges where it's about the process and purposes out of the window?

SPEAKER_01 20:36

So once again, in our model, uh, since you have all of these independent dentists that have come together and they still own it, and um you know, it occurs to me, we're here in London, right? Yeah, we're very close to approaching the 250th uh anniversary of the founding of the country of the United States.

SPEAKER_00 20:56

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 20:57

And uh I'm kind of a history buff, and I I look when I think back on this when uh when the Revolutionary War was over, you had uh 13 colonies, and those 13 colonies came together for one purpose in order to win that independence. But as soon as as soon as it was over, they all wanted to revert back to their own independent colonies. They had an Articles of Confederation that held them there together very loosely, but it took six years before after that before they finally uh the Constitution was written. And it was a four and a half month brawl in Philadelphia trying to extract that independence away from those colonies in order to see themselves as one. And that want to say human nature hasn't changed in 4,000 years, it certainly hasn't in 250. Yeah that is the challenge is how do you how do you get people who have ownership to come together and look forward? Into a purpose without thinking about how does this all affect me?

SPEAKER_00 22:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 22:06

How does this affect me? The big we is way more capable than the individual I. And that's what we have proven at Pepper Point over time is if you can get them to stay together and focused on purpose, you get amazing results. Yeah. But I also find that it is much easier to bring people together in wartime, such as the revolution or such as around COVID, than it is to hold them together in peacetime.

SPEAKER_00 22:35

Greed kicks in. And uh I was listening to something where they say if you acknowledge it, it's like, what is your greed? What is my greed? Then you're speaking from the place of honesty. Yeah. And then it's just on the table.

SPEAKER_01 22:49

Yeah, it is because every single organization has issues. Yeah. If you take a look at dentistry right now and the consolidation, there's probably 85% of the dental service organizations that were scheduled for recap since the summer of 22 that have not occurred yet. And there's no real clear line of sight for that occurring.

SPEAKER_00 23:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:14

So you can look at that and say, okay, that grouping has issues. And within that big broad issue, there's micro issues all the way down. Labor shortages, turnover, um, incentive alignments, all of the things that go into creating a fragile business. Yeah. And what we're all trying to do is build durability. And you build durability by having aligned incentives with all of the stakeholders and keeping them aligned toward a single purpose. That's the goal. And durability in an organization means that you thrive in the great times and you survive through the bad ones because your belief in the purpose is far greater than the individual self-centeredness. That comes from that great comes from natural human behavior.

SPEAKER_00 24:07

Yeah. Dr. Um White, uh, what's the advice you find yourself giving uh to like young dentists or young CEOs? You give me a lot of advice and it has always served me very well. But is there like a common theme you feel like they need to know?

SPEAKER_01 24:27

Yeah, this is the way I would say it. Don't assume that everyone wants the same thing that you want.

SPEAKER_00 24:32

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 24:34

Uh I think a lot of times CEOs that are leading a company, they can be distant from the clinician. Many of them have never been clinicians. Much easier to be distant. PaperPoint, 80% of our team is in the same building every single day. They have enormous access to me, and which makes it a challenge because a lot of times you find yourself working in the business rather than working on the business. So that's what I would say. Make sure as a CEO that you separate the two.

SPEAKER_00 25:08

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 25:08

Get away, get some clarity, work on the business. Then go back into it, charge into it. It's kind of like a fighter in a ring. You've got your three minutes that you're in the ring, and then you go to your corner. You've got to get to that corner in order to refocus before you get back into it again. And then don't assume that everybody wants what you want. Every single individual in any job, I don't care where it is, they're ultimately there because they have needs in their own life. They have their wants, they have their desires, they have their goals. It's it's and it's usually very local. It's family, it's friends, it's community, it's it's whatever. And if this isn't helping them, if their job and their position is not helping them meet those personal, financial and professional goals, they will not stay.

SPEAKER_00 25:59

That's so true.

SPEAKER_01 26:00

And so just assume that everybody has their own specific reason for being there and rally around purpose, rally around incentives and alignment in order to create something durable.

SPEAKER_00 26:10

And Dr. White, do you believe that uh great leaders are they're born or they are created by pressure, by instinct? What what how about where do they come from?

SPEAKER_01 26:21

So I would say that entrepreneurs are born entrepreneurs. Okay, entrepreneurs and leaders are not the same thing. And I have found that out. Being an entrepreneur and a founder is very different than being a CEO. And those are those can work together beautifully, and they can work against one another. And I have found in my own experience, I have seen both at times. Founders and entrepreneurs want to charge hard, they see it, they see the vision. It's as clear as a beautiful day.

SPEAKER_00 26:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 26:58

And you want to get there so fast. You just want to charge into it. But a lot of times you forget or you don't accurately reflect what it is that you see. And the others will not charge into that as fast as you will. It's fine if you're a founder and you're a startup and you have people with that same vision as you're beginning something. But as time goes on, a lot of the people that were there that founded it with you, they're not the same people that are around you now. And it's like blazing a trail through a forest. I can get through it because I know my way, but if I go too fast, then vision of me gets lost from the trees that's in between us, and people stop.

SPEAKER_00 27:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 27:44

So that's the challenge is taking that spirit and that vision and that foresight and being able to see around those corners and bringing other people along with you at the same time.

SPEAKER_00 27:56

What helps with that? How do you bridge that gap?

SPEAKER_01 27:58

You got to slow down.

SPEAKER_00 28:00

Slow down.

SPEAKER_01 28:00

You got to slow down, you got to look around. You can say, all right, who am I leaving behind here? And I would say, as a as a CEO, if there's one thing that uh that I would change about how I have approached it, I would slow down and bring people along um more gradually. But it is so hard to do because it's a personality type. So yes, you're a born entrepreneur, you develop leadership skills. Now there are natural-born leadership skills that people have, but it's left unharnessed, they create complexity and chaos.

SPEAKER_00 28:36

Yeah. Um what part of leadership feels heavy when you're going through that journey?

SPEAKER_01 28:45

Um, you're alone.

SPEAKER_00 28:47

You're alone.

SPEAKER_01 28:47

You're always alone. Everybody has somebody that they can go to to help them solve their problems. If you're leading the right way and you're the you're a CEO, um you will find yourself at times being in a room full of people and you are completely alone.

SPEAKER_00 29:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 29:08

And the reason for that is you're having to make calls on 5149 decisions every single day. No decision ever comes to you as an 80-20. Those are made by somebody else. Those are obvious. Every decision you make is 5149. And in order to really get everybody moving with you and to be truly successful and to move forward as fast as you can, it's the equivalent. You have to hit 51, you have to hit that 51 every time in a row. It's like playing roulette and hitting red 15 times in a row. It's impossible to do that.

SPEAKER_00 29:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 29:45

And so you have to accept that you're going to miss some calls.

SPEAKER_00 29:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 29:50

And you cannot let that phase you. You cannot be weak. You've got to be strong, and you've got to stay in that arena, and you've got to stay focused, and you've got to know you're going to win. Not win for yourself. Yeah. This has never ever been about me. This is about winning for the purpose. And that purpose, at the end of the day, is this. I believe that doctor ownership, if directed in the right way, in group, no longer isolated, because isolated dentists do not necessarily always perform the best treatment. It comes down to what they're willing to accept in themselves because there's generally nobody to see what they're doing. They get to decide, but if you're in a group, there all of a sudden is accountability if you're focused on going the right way. I believe that is ultimately where dentistry needs to mature as it comes out of consolidation, is it needs to mature into that sort of utopia that will never exist. But at least we can strive for it. Because ultimately the dentists are simply the hands that do exactly what dentists are supposed to do, and that is care for people, care for patients. None of this is about dentistry, none of this is about the dentist, none of this is about me. This is how do you put something in place that is going to provide the best care for the people that blindly trust you?

SPEAKER_00 31:21

Absolutely. And it's such an intimate need because uh smile is your their life. Uh Dr. White, um, I want to know like how your relationship with ambition has it changed from the beginning to now? Has it changed? You're you're you continue to stay as ambitious as you've beginning you because though you want to see it through. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 31:46

I've given 43 consecutive years of my life to dentistry.

SPEAKER_00 31:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 31:51

I wouldn't have done that if it wasn't important to me. I've always made every single decision through the lens of what's in the best interest of the patient. I did that as a clinician, I do it as a CEO of Pepper Point right now. It's all it's not always popular, Amon.

SPEAKER_00 32:06

I know.

SPEAKER_01 32:07

Because it's hard. There is a natural tendency toward expediency, taking the easy path. Life is hard. Every day is hard. Choose which hard you're gonna take.

SPEAKER_00 32:20

Yeah, doing things right is even harder.

SPEAKER_01 32:22

Yep. But I just stay true. I will always do the next right thing.

SPEAKER_00 32:28

That's wonderful.

SPEAKER_01 32:28

That's it.

unknown 32:29

Dr.

SPEAKER_00 32:30

White, do you have a support system in your life that keeps it balanced? I know, um, Michelle and your uh kids, but what do you think you drive your strength from?

SPEAKER_01 32:40

Yeah, it's my family. Uh, my family, my faith. Uh, I ultimately uh believe that I am here for a purpose. Uh, in my faith, it says um you're here to serve others. That is the second commandment. The second great commandment is to do that. And uh so I will spend my entire life doing everything that I can to serve others until I don't have a breath left. And I will do it in the very best way that I know how. I will not be perfect, it will not always be popular. But if you're popular, you're really taking no risks in life. You're really not making any real efforts or strides toward creating something great. Yeah, because the world has its critics. And if you don't have any, then you're taking a safe route. So I always see the critic as a sign that I'm on the right path.

SPEAKER_00 33:34

Yeah. Yeah, a little bit of resistance is good for it. It brings movement with it.

SPEAKER_01 33:39

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 33:39

Dr. White, I can talk with you forever. Um you know that. Uh I want to know: is there a uh leader you admire, that non-dental or someone you like I want to do?

SPEAKER_01 33:51

Yeah, so I'm gonna go back in history a little bit. Once again, we're here in London, right? Um Wartime Churchill.

SPEAKER_00 33:59

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 33:59

I've read so many books um on uh wartime churchill. Now, of course, as soon as the war was over, the parliament immediately voted him out. Um, thank you very much, but um war's over, we don't need you anymore. Uh and so that kind of you know resonates at times, right? But um I just loved the fact that he was able, in the face of absolute certain defeat, I mean the enemy was right on the shores. They had no possible way of survival. But what I love about what he was able to do was rally a nation together to have the confidence that in the face of certain defeat, if we can just live one more day, one more day, one more day, something will happen that will turn it around. Wow, and he was able to do that from just a few blocks away from here, uh, in the war rooms, he was able to navigate that from basically a basement and save democracy for an entire world. So, yeah, I admire uh the lion.

SPEAKER_00 35:09

That's wonderful. Well, thank you so much, Dr. White. It's been quite a pleasure. I am going away from this episode so many things personally learning from here. Thank you so much for being here.

SPEAKER_01 35:21

It's been my pleasure, Mana. Always love talking to you.

SPEAKER_00 35:23

Likewise, thank you.